Peabody man chosen as new probation chief

The man in charge of the state’s juvenile justice system was selected Thursday as the next commissioner of the Department of Probation.

Andy Metzger/ STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE

The man in charge of the state’s juvenile justice system was selected Thursday as the next commissioner of the Department of Probation, a state agency that had been wracked with charges of patronage hiring before a new state law and a change in leadership.

Department of Youth Services Commissioner Edward Dolan, a resident of Peabody, was picked to helm the probation agency, the Trial Court announced Thursday, and he said he would start June 10.

“He understands post-incarceration services and responsibilities,” said Court Administrator Harry Spence, who called Dolan “an outstanding manager” with a focus on rehabilitation.

Dolan became commissioner of DYS just under a year ago, and had worked for 14 years as deputy commissioner. He was executive director of the state Parole Board in the early 1990s.

“The core group of folks at probation get into this business for the right reasons,” Dolan told the News Service. He said, “I think they’re excited about the opportunity to really have that forward focus.”

Dolan said the department is already undertaking an upgrade to the risk-assessment it uses to classify different probationers, and said when he is in charge he will have both a public safety focus and an emphasis on rehabilitation.

“We are pleased to appoint a respected criminal justice professional of Ed Dolan’s caliber to head the Massachusetts Probation Service,” said Trial Court Chief Justice Robert Mulligan and Spence in a joint statement. “He has proven his leadership capability at several organizations during times of significant challenge and opportunity. He has the vision, problem solving and organizational development skills, as well as the knowledge of the court system and criminal justice issues in Massachusetts, to accelerate the restoration of professionalism to the Probation Service.”

The appointment will not require a confirmation, according to a court official.

Acting Commissioner of Probation Ronal Corbett Jr. announced in August 2012 that he would not seek a reappointment at the conclusion of his term, in January. Corbett replaced former Commissioner John O’Brien, who recently beat state charges over allegedly corrupt hiring, but still faces federal charges of bribery for an allegedly “sham hiring system” that allowed him to reward allies.

O’Brien stepped down at the end of 2010, after an independent report by Paul Ware described a rigged hiring system. In response to what happened within the agency, the Legislature passed an ethics reform law in 2011 governing how job recommendations can be handled.

Corbett made “wonderful strides” within a “department that had suffered for a decade,” Spence said. He said Dolan has experience “working in an organization that is in some distress and needs some continuing attention and improvement.”

“A lot has been done to revamp hiring. And there have been some strict safeguards put in place,” said Dolan, noting that screening of interviewees occurs outside the department without any access to references. He said, “We want to do better than that. We want to make sure we’re picking the very best people.”

As chief of DYS, Dolan has sought alternatives to incarceration for youthful offenders, launching pilot programs including one in which offenders are placed into foster homes.

"We run 13 detention units around the state. We're proud of what we do, but for the wrong kids that's a very damaging place to be," Dolan said earlier this year. He said, "The whole idea is to reduce reliance on locked hardware-secured detention. And the real way to state it is it's really the right youths in the right place for the right reasons."

Dolan has spent a career in various agencies of the criminal justice system and the support system for people with mental illness. After two years as a city planner in Chelsea, Dolan worked as a court planner for the Trial Court from 1979 to 1985, when he became director of research, planning and systems development at the Parole Board. From 1990 to 1994, he served as executive director of the Parole Board.

Dolan was forensic manager at the Department of Mental Health in 1994, serving in that role for a year, before becoming chief operating officer of Massachusetts Half Way Houses, Inc. Dolan rejoined government in 1997, taking his first position at DYS, as director of classification. In 1998, Dolan became deputy commissioner.

“The MBA applauds the court's selection of Dolan to lead the probation department,” Massachusetts Bar Association Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Counsel Martin Healy said in a statement.